It is well known that Apple devices use an Apple ID and Password for activation, even the latest Apple AirPods Pro 2nd Gen are tied to a person’s Apple account. This tie up of all devices with the Apple account, not only helps in a seamless ‘Hand off’ feature, it also allows you to transfer photos, iMessages, Facetime calls, and much more between devices using the same Apple ID.
Image Credits: MacWorld
Moreover, one of the huge benefits of Apple ID based activation is security. Apple’s ‘Activation Lock’ feature is one of the most amazing features found in smartphones. If a person’s Android smartphone gets stolen, it can be reset using recovery mode and setup as a new phone. The device can then be sold in the market, often ending up in the hands of bad actors. Meanwhile, stolen Apple devices need the Apple ID and Password of the user who last activated the device in order to be functional again.
So in case, if your iPhone, iPad, or MacBook gets stolen, the thieves require your Apple ID and Password to reset it and sell it. Without the owner’s Apple ID & Password, the Apple device would only be good to sell as spare parts like the display, motherboard, camera module, chassis, etc. Fetching a far lower sum of money, than a fully functional Apple Device.
As technology moves ahead far and wide, thieves and scammers are also moving fast. New reports on forums suggest that thieves are now scamming victims into giving up their Apple ID and Password to bypass the Apple Activation Lock, and this is after stealing the victims’ iPhones.
Once the iPhone or any other Apple device is stolen, the thieves soon power off the device and remove the sim card. Meanwhile, the victim would be constantly checking the ‘Find My” app to track their iPhone. After a couple of days, the thieves would then send a text message to the recovery phone number with a link to a phishing website. This phishing link then opens a website that looks very much like an Apple website, and asks the person to enter their Apple ID and Password to detect the location of their stolen iPhone. The moment the victim enters their Apple ID and Password, the scammers then enter the ID on the iPhone and, bypassing Apple’s Activation Lock, they can now setup the iPhone as a ‘new’ device and resell it for a much higher profit than just selling it for spare parts.
Image Credits: Apple Track
The majority of iPhone users would have never seen the ‘Find My’ website, and have no idea what content is shown when their lost/stolen iPhone is recovered, therefore, they do not fully check the scammer’s website.
